Wagon-jack.



J. ROOKE.

WAGON JACK.

APPLICATION FILED DEC.23,1905.

2 SHBBTSSHBET1 [/VVE/VTOR I v A TTOR/V YS PATENTED NOV. 27, 1906 No. 836,829. PATENTED NOV. 27, 1906.

J. ROGKE.

WAGON JACK.

APPLICATION FILED DEG.28,1905.

S-SHEET 2 WITNESSES.-

UNITED s nires JOHN ROCKE, OF MEADOWS, lLLiNOIQ.

To a whom it may concern:

Be it known tha I, JOHN Rooms, a citizen of the United States, residing at Meadows, in the county of McLean and State of Illinois, have invented a new and useful Wagon-Jack, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improved. wagon-jack or lifting device intended and adapted to be used in connection with iortable grain-elevators for the purpose oi tipping or tilting wagons loader. with grain for the purpose of discharging the contents of such wagons into carrier-troughs connected with the elevating mechanism; and the obj ects of the invention are to simplify and improve the construction and operation of this class of devices.

With these and other ends in view, which will readily appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the improved construction and novel arrangernent and combination of parts, which will be hereinafter fully described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings has been illustrated a simple andpre'lerred form of the invention, it being, however. understood that no limitation is necessarily made to the precise structural details therein exhibited, but that changes, alterations, and modifications with in the scope of the invention may be made when desired.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a wagon-jack or lifting apparatus constructed in accordance with the principles of the invention and showing the same, with the transportingwvheels removed, in position for operation. Fi 2- is a vertical sectional view taken longitudinally through the hoisting mechanism. Fig. 3 isa transverse sectional view taken through the hoisting mechanism on the plane indicated by the line 3 3 in Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a bottom plan view of the hoisting mechanism.

Corresponding parts in the several figures are indicated throughout by similar characters of reference.

The improved apparatus comprises a suit-- ably-constructed base-frame B, for the convenient transportation of which it maybe provided with a pair of trans ortin -wheels, as 1. (Best seen in Figs. 2 an i of t drawings.) The transporting -wheels, however, are detached when the machine is placed in position for operation, as will be seen in Fi Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented. Nov. 27, 1908.

1 of the drawings, it being understood that the wheels may be removed from the spindles, as shown in Fig. 1., orthat the spindle-carry ing stu laaxies, one oi which has been shown at 2, may be bodily removed, if preferred.

Near the ends of the frame are located a pair of supporting devices (I G, such including an upright approximately ve ticrl post or member 3, an inclined brace r, and a triangular guide member The inclined braces 4- 4 are disposed in front oi the posts 3 3 and are connected with the upper ends of the latter, and the triangular guide members 5 are secured upon the rearsides of the uprights or posts 3 3, said guide members having rear edges 6, that are a iproxiniately parallel Guide-pulleys 7 are su ported for rotation near the upper ends of tne posts 3.

A lifting frame or platform i is. provided, the same being composed. of front and rear members 8 and s, that are suitably connected and spaced apart by means of end. members 10 10 and, ii desired, by one or more intermediate connecting-pieces or cross members, as 11. The front and rear memhere have terminal extensions 8 and 9, engaging tlie front edge oi the inclined brace 4 and tie rearedge or the guide member 5, whereby the lilting-platform will be guided when it is being elevated, as will be presently described. The front and rear members 8 and 9 of the lifting-plattorm may be suitably beveled, as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings, at 12, to enable the front Wheels of a wagon that is to be tilted tobe c0nveniently supported thereon.

The base-frame is provided. with suitable ing a drum to which are attached flexible hoisting elements, such as chains 16, which are guided over the ulleys 7 and connected with the apices of yo es 17, that are suitably connected with the ends at the hoisting-platform. The shaft carries a worm-gear i8, meshing with a worm 1- upon a shaft 20, which latter is journaled in suitable bearings upon the base-frame, preferably above and at right angles to the shaft 15. The shaft carries a pair of pinions 21 and 22, one of which, 21, meshes directly with a pinion 23, supported for rotation. upon a shaft 24, which latter is mounted in suitable bearin parallel to the shaft 20. :The pinion 2 meshes with asuitably-supperted idler 25, which in turn bearings for a shaft 15, said shaft constitutto the front edges of tile inclined braces 4.

. .1: eaasee the shaft 24, with which the sleeve 27 is in this manner connected. It is to be under stood, however, that the manner of connecting the sleeve slidably with the shaft 24 may be varied within the scope of the invention. The sleeve 27 has terminal clutch members and 31, both facing in the same direction and adapted for engagement with clutch members 30 and 31,'formed upon the hubs of the pinions 23 and 26, respectively. The shaft 24 has been illustrated as provided with a non-circular terminal 32, adapted to be connected, as by means of a tumbling-rod, with some suitable source of power, which Way be sofne driven shaft or other portion of a portable grain-elevator in connection with which the device of the present invention is to be used. I

The sleeve 27 is operated by means of a shifting-lever 33, which for the purposes of the present invention may be conveniently fulcrumed upon the shaft 15, said shiftinglevcr being provided with a fork 34, engaging.

an annular groove in the sleeve. The shaft 15 carries a sprocket-wheel 36, over which is guided a chain 37 the ends of which are carried by sprocket-wheels 38, suitably supported for rotation by the base-frame. The lower lead of the chain 37 is guided through a fork 39, formed upon the lower end of the lever 33, and a link of said chain has a cross-bar 40, adapted to engage the fork 39.

In the operation of this invention the trans-- porting-wheels are removed, and the device is placed in suitable relation to the portable grain-elevator in connection with which it is to be operated, but which, as it forms no part of the present invention, does not require to be described or illustrated in connection with this application. It may be generally Sta/ted, however, that the device of the present invention is adapted to be used in connection with a portable grain-elevator of the type described and shown in l ietters Patent of the United States No. 784,180, granted to me on the 7th day of March, 1905. It may be further stated that the base-frame of the present invention and. the supporting-frame of the portableelevator may be conveniently connected or hitched together for transportation and that a tongue may be attached to or connected with the base-frame of the present device. Suitable approaches may also be provided to enable the front wheels of the wagon. that is to be unloaded to be driven onto the lifting-platform, although such approaches may not he needed, as it is the intention to place the platform as low down as possible. The shaft 24 then connected with the driving mechanism and will to all intents and purposes be constantly driven, the

clutch-sleeve 27 occupying an intermediate position b ween the pinions 23 and 26 when the lifting device is not to be operated, To operate the shaft 15, the shifting-lever is operated by hand, so as to place one of the clutches 30 or 31 in engagement with the corresponding clutch member 30 or 31 of one of the pinions 23 or 26. If the clutch member 30 is placed in engagement with the clutch member 30 of the pinion 23, the latter will engage the pinion 21 to rotate the shaft 20, the worm 19 of which meshes with the worm-gear 18 upon the shaft 15, which is thereby driven in one direction, the direction of rotation being reversed by manipulating the shifting-lever to move the sleeve 27 until the clutch member 31 engagesthe cl. tch member 31 of the pinion 26, which latter, through the idler 25, w'll transmit motion to the pinion 22 of the shaft 20. It is obvious that when one of the pinions 23 or 26 is driven positively by the clutch-sleeve 27 the other one of said pinions will rotate idly in the opposite direction upon its supportingshaft. the pinions 23 or 26 may be utilized to rotate the shaft 15: to hoist the platform, the direction of rotation being governed by the direction of the pitch of the worm 19.

The sprocket-whcel 36 upon the shaft 15 serves when the machine is in operation to drive the chain 37 having the cross-bar 40, which latter will eventually strike the fork 39 at the lower end of the lever 33, thus shifting the position of said lever and moving the clutch-sleeve 27 to a position intermediate the pinions 23 and 26, where the clutch members at the ends of the sleeve will be out of engagen'ient with the clutch members upon the hubs of the pinions. By this simple mechanism the shifting-lever will be automatically operated when. the liftingplatform reaches the upper and lower terminals of its movement, thus throwing the operating mechanism out of gear and preventing breakage of parts of the machinery. The shaft 15 will be locked by the worm-gear l8 incshin r with the worm l9 and will thus be )reventeil from being rotated by the weight of the wagon sup orted upon the lifting-platform when the riving mechanism is thrown out of gear while the platform is near the upper limit of. its movement.

When the lifting-platform moves in an upward direction, it is guided, as herein described, by the inclined braces 4 and the guides 5, the movement being approximately in an arc concentric with the hind axle of the vehicle, thus preventio any considerable displacement of the him wheels during the process of lifting or elevating the front part of the vehicle. This is of considerable importance in order to avoid the dlsplacement It is also obvious that either one of.

in construction and may be provided at a moderate expense. It is easily operated and thoroughly efficient for the purposes for form haying terminal extensions engaging which it is provided.

.Having thus described the invention, What is claimed is 1. A portable base having uprights, inclined braces connected with said uprights, triangular guides connected with the u rights and having guide edges approximate y )arallel to the inclined braces, guide memers near the upper ends of the u rights, suitably-operated flexible hoisting e oments guided over the guide members, and a lifting platform connected with the hoisting ele ments and guided over the inclined braces and guides.

2. A portable base having uprights, inelined bracesand inclined guide members connected with said uprights, a lifting-platthe inclined braces and guide members, and hoisting means for the platform.

3. A base having uprights, inclined braces and guide members connected with the uprights, a lifting-platform having terminal (X- tensions engaging the inclined braces and the guide members, yokes connected with the ends of the platform, and suitably operated and guided flexible hoisting elements connected with the yokes.

4. In a device of the class described, a

ortable base, uprights near the ends of said base, a platform guided between saidv u'irights, a shaft below said platform, guirv e members at the upper ends of the uprights, hoisting elements guided oversaid members and connecting the shaft and the platform, a worm-gear upon the shaft, a shart supporting a worm meshing with said worm-gear, a pair of pinions upon the worm-carrying shaft, a counter-shaft, a pinion upon the counter-shaft meshing with one of the pinions upon the worm-carrying shaft, an idler meshing with the other pinion upon the wormcarrying shaft, a pinion upon the countershaft meshing with the idler, clutch members upon the hubs of the inions upon the counter-shaft, a sleeve slid able upon and rotatable with the counter-shaft and having terminal clutch members adapted to engage the clutch members upon the hubs of the pinions, and shifting means for the clutchsleeve; said means including a shiftin -lever for said sleeve fulorumed upon the s aft with which the hoisting elements are connected, said lover having a terminal fork, and a suitably-supported sprocket-ohain guided through the fork of the shifting-lever and having a cross-bar adapted to engage the prongs of the fork.

5. In a device of the class described, a drum or shaft, a constantly-driven shaft, means for transmitting motion from the latter to the drum in two directions said means including a sleeve having terminal clutch members and a shiftinglever for said sleeve fulcrumed upon the drum-shaft, said lever having a terminal fork; and 2 suitably-su ported chain guided through the fork of tl e shifting-lever, driven by a sprocket-wheel u )Oil the drum, and a cross-bar upon said c ain adapted to engage the rongs of the fork upon the lever to shift t 1e position of the latter.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto aflixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

JOHN ROUKE.

Witnesses A. B. FoLKnus, J. L. ENGEL. 

